A huge backlash erupted online over the casting of Mouni Roy as Varun Dhawan’s fake mother on-screen in David Dhawan’s comedy entertainer Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai. The criticism was severe since Mouni Roy is just a year older than Varun Dhawan, even though their relationship in the film is portrayed as fake. In an interview with News18, Mouni Roy said that she is not bothered at all by what people are saying online.
Responding to the age-gap controversy, Mouni Roy said, “I can’t do anything about it. I didn’t care what the noise was. I didn’t care what people were saying. It became such a big thing that ‘how can the makers do this to me!’ But I knew what I had done in the film. I knew that my director was very happy, and so is everybody I’ve worked with on the film.”
Mouni Roy revealed that even she was taken aback when she learned that she would play Varun’s mother on-screen. “First, Mukesh Chhabra (casting director) had called me. When he told me about the part, my first reaction was also that. I was like, ‘His mother?’ Then I went and heard a narration from David sir and Farhad Samji (dialogue writer),” said the Naagin actress.
Mouni Roy revealed that she is a huge fan of David Dhawan and that his films are her comfort watch. She was also highly excited about doing comedy for the very first time. The actress felt that keeping her away from promotions was a good call, as it made people curious about what she is doing in the film.